Friday, July 17, 2015

Bronx Session IPA

There’s
a lot I could say about Bronx Session IPA, and yet at the same time
there’s not. This beer is of the general “New England-style” IPA
subgenre, but is also a session IPA. It’s spicy, grassy, and fruity and
yet it’s also a tad milder and less bitter than I’d expect. Still, it
looks great and it’s easy and fun to drink – there’s nothing wrong it at
all. I like it.

I poured a 16oz can into a tulip glass. There was no freshness date and it cost $3.65 ($0.23 per ounce).

Appearance: Orange milkshake complexion (hazy pale orange; not even
close to transparent). Pours to a very large, off-white, foamy head
which laces and retains very well.

Smell: Fairly light nose of spicy/grassy/citrusy hops.

Taste: What’s interesting about this beer is that its base malt is
Vienna with some wheat used as a specialty. That doesn’t affect the
palette radically when compared to others of the style, though it does
seem to be just a little milder than most. Additionally, the use of
Caliente and Palisades hops are an interesting choice. They create for
the familiar aroma and flavor combination of citrus and spicy/grass
though I swear I detect just the faintest trace of actual pepper-like
spiciness on the finish. A touch of pine in there as well. And yet,
despite all these descriptors, I’d still honestly consider this a rather
mild brew. Supposedly 59 IBUs, it doesn’t seem quite that bitter (nor
should it be since many regular IPAs have the same or less IBUs). This
could easily pass as just an American Pale Ale and it’d work just as
well that way.

Drinkability: It’s rare that IPAs – session, single or otherwise – are
truly refreshing, but in the case Bronx Session IPA I’d say that’s
applicable. The mouthfeel is full with a soft, smooth texture (creamy,
even). It glides across the tongue and quenches my thirst every swig.
There is a bit of a dry aftertaste, though I think I’d prefer that to it
being completely clean. At 5% ABV it’s a little bigger than I’d prefer
in a SIPA, but considering it comes in a can (and a 16oz can at that)
makes it easily adaptable to situation drinking (i.e. outdoors in the
summer straight from the can).

63.3 - 3.5B-ABOVE AVERAGEThe lowest I can rate a beer and still honestly give it a thumbs up. The attributes are enough to overshadow the flaws. Nothing I'd jump for joy about, but a drinkable, satisfactory beer to be sure.

53.0 - 3.2C+AVERAGE/NEUTRALNot quite a good beer, not quite a bad beer. I don't have a strong opinion either way about it. There may be something to like here, but there's also something holding it back.

42.8 - 2.9CBELOW AVERAGEThe best of the worst. A beer with noticeable flaws and perhaps some minor attributes. Tolerable for a serving, but no reason to seek it out. A genuine thumbs down, but not something I despise.

32.6 - 2.7C-TOLERABLEWhile not the worst beer, there's probably nothing about it that I like. Plenty of off-putting features. I can tolerate a single serving, but would recommend avoiding it.